Checker-Schuck's
Kragen Nationals
Phoenix, Ariz.
(Feb. 20-23)
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19th annual |
| Sunday |
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Capps, Anderson get wins, leads |
Brandon Bernstein got the early jump on final-round opponent Larry Dixon and instantly renewed an age-old rivalry between two of the country's biggest breweries by holding on for his first career Top Fuel win. Funny Car victor Ron Capps and Pro Stock winner Greg Anderson joined Bernstein in the winner's circle of the 19th annual Checker Schuck's Kragen Nationals, with both moving into the points lead of their respective categories.
Only time will tell, but certainly this early-season race, the second of 23 on the 2003 POWERade Drag Racing Series, could signify a changing of the guard in the sport of drag racing's top three professional classes.
In just his second career start Bernstein repeated the feat his father, Kenny, accomplished in 1991 by claiming his first Top Fuel win at Firebird International Raceway. This one proved young Brandon belongs among the sport's elite as he tattooed reigning champion Dixon with a big .030 to .088-second reaction-time edge at the starting line. At the other end of the track, Bernstein's 4.574 at 322.58 mph was more than .02-second ahead of Dixon's 4.539 at 321.73 mph.
 Brandon Bernstein
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"I wanted to go in deep to get a good light, but when the top bulb went out I got nervous," Bernstein said of the deep-staged position he put his Budweiser dragster in during the final. "I had to refocus real quick and just calm down and make sure I saw yellow before I left. That was the first thing dad said at the other end. He was pointing at me and saying, 'You got a little lucky there,' and he's right.
"I don't know if I expected to win this soon in my professional career. I certainly knew the car was there. Tim and Kim [Richards, crew chiefs] gave me a car that ran 4.5-second laps all weekend, which makes it pretty obvious that you have the car and equipment to win. I just didn't know if I'd get up to speed this quickly."
Kenny wasn't surprised. "He's way better than I was at the same point in my career," Kenny said. "And he'll only get better the more laps he gets in the car. This feels good. I'm very proud of Brandon. It's a nice win to get in so many ways. It certainly answers a lot of questions about his ability and what this new team would be like. It takes a lot of pressure off of all of us."
After getting shut down in the opening round at his first professional-level race, Bernstein came to life today, beating Mike Strasburg, Jim Head, defending event champion Tony Schumacher, and Dixon.
Dixon's Miller Lite juggernaut might not have bagged the win but they continued to roll here in Phoenix with the defending series champ posting wins over Melanie Troxel, Clay Millican, and back-to-back No. 1 qualifier Doug Kalitta to reach the 48th final of his career. Top Fuel results
Capps blasted into the points lead for the first time since midway through his 1998 campaign with a huge holeshot win over Team Force driver Gary Densham. Densham had the quicker car, posting a 4.810 at 318.99 mph against Capps' 4.868 at 310.13 mph, but Capps' .084-second starting-line advantage, which came courtesy of a mind-bending .003-second reaction time, yielded a relative big two-hundredths of a second margin of victory.
 Ron Capps
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"I can't take credit for that light," Capps said. "Plain and simple, to me it was just time to go. The anticipation is so unbelievable. I am so amped up in there and I'm holding that brake with all I got just waiting for any sign of amber to go. But I don't know if that happened that time. I just went and it worked out. I don't want to jinx myself but I've never had a red-light as a pro.
"You always have fans out here tapping you and saying, 'When are you gonna beat [John] Force?' I sure won't knock the champ now. I learned that lesson in '98. We all know he'll be there, along with a lot of other drivers, at the end of the season. I'm just getting a little head start, that's all.
"You wake up and look at the ladder and never see an easy round. Today I saw Tony Pedregon on our side of the ladder and I knew it would be tough to get past him. To do it and then go on and win the race tells me I have a car that can win at any time, and that's a real good feeling to have."
Capps piloted his Skoal Racing Camaro through to his 14th victory and 29th final of his decorated career by beating Tim Wilkerson, low qualifier and Pomona winner Tony Pedregon, surprise semifinalist Frank Pedregon, and Densham. His opening pass against Wilkerson was the most nerve-wracking as he posted a beatable 5.06, but Wilkerson had lost traction near half-track.
Densham beat a pair of former champions - Cruz Pedregon and Gary Scelzi - as well as championship hopeful Whit Bazemore to reach the 13th final round of his 30-year career. The Auto Club of Southern California driver, who is coming off the best year of his career after finishing fourth in the 2002 championship chase, is currently in third place. Funny Car results
Anderson simply drove away from Coughlin in the Pro Stock final. After nearly identical starts, the former crew chief of six-time champion Warren Johnson staked his claim as an early contender for the 2003 title with his first victory at this track, crossing well ahead of Coughlin with a 6.865 to Coughlin's 6.907.
 Greg Anderson
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The victory also moved Anderson into the POWERade championship points lead for just the second time in his career. He briefly held that honor after a runner-up finish at last year's Brainerd event. Anderson now has five career wins, ringing up two in each of the last two seasons.
"We're way ahead of schedule," Anderson said. "I basically started over this year. I had a great group of talented guys last year and we had a career year but we were all old employees of Warren Johnson and I guess we were programmed to keep the intensity up here and the fun down here. I wasn't having any fun and I had to make a change.
"Our team owner is all about fun so we hired some new guys that are all easygoing. We also switched from a Chevy to a Pontiac plus we moved the shop. It was a lot to do in the off-season and probably pretty risky but I knew it would work in the long run. I thought it would take a minimum of five or six races to gel so I'm a very happy guy right now. To be in the winner's circle and at the top of the points is awesome."
Anderson, who drives Ken Black's Las Vegas General Construction Pontiac Grand Am, maintained his reputation for having great reaction times, averaging .025-second starts against Ron Krisher, Jim Yates, defending series champion Jeg Coughlin Jr., and his brother, Troy, in the finals.
Behind the wheel of his Tommy Utt-tuned Jeg's Mail Order Chevrolet Cavalier, Coughlin rocketed from 15th to fourth place in the POWERade points by racing to the 11th final of his career. Coughlin beat Greg Stanfield, Kurt Johnson, and No. 1 qualifier Bruce Allen with a string of mid-6.8-second passes to make the final. Pro Stock results
Dean Carter scored his first career win in Comp, driving his A/Nostalgia Dragster to a tight final-round victory against David Rampy, (-.545) 7.195 to (-.542) 7.468.
Larry Zavala got a free pass to the Super Stock winner's circle, taking a bye run with his GT/FA entry after Kevin Nicks was disqualied for deep-staging his SS/FA machine. Ken Passerby captured top honors in Stock with his I/SA machine, running a 12.15 on a 12.14 dial to turn back former national champ Keith Lynch, whose C/SA machine slowed to a 10.94 on a 10.80 target.
Jason Brink used a holeshot to win Super Comp, running an 8.920 to defeat Gerry Nelson's slow-leaving 8.913, while Larry Scarth titled in Super Gas with a near-perfect 9.907 to defeat Jerry Denton Jr., who slowed to a 9.934. Ron Kelly Jr. took a one-thousandths double-breakout Super Street victory over Doug Young, coupling a .008 reaction time to a 10.895 to push Young's .012-initiated 10.894 further under.
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